A procedure that has been used successfully for years to heal sports injuries is now becoming the treatment of choice by women to improve the appearance of wrinkles, scars, sun damage and even dark circles under their eyes.
The treatment, Platelet-Rich Plasma, is gaining in popularity for the same reasons athletes opt for it: because of its organic, natural properties and because it is results driven. It uses plasma taken from the patient’s own blood instead of chemicals injected into the body. The possibility of side effects is practically non-existent because the body is unlikely to reject its own blood.
The treatment has become popularly known as the Platelet-Rich Plasma Facelift thanks to one celebrity, Kim Kardashian, who tried and recommended the procedure, and gave it its nickname, The Vampire Facial.
The vampire includes drawing blood from your arm, separating the platelets, and then injecting them into your skin via microneedling. The doctor runs the needle pen over your face while squirting the platelets into the mini injection holes. Since the platelets are high in growth hormone, and the microneedling stimulates the skin to regenerate, the entire procedure is meant to aid cell turnover. The results mimic a facelift, but with zero downtime.
Platelet rich plasma injections can also be used for the following conditions:
- Lumbar spine disc pain
- Rotator cuff injuries, including partial-thickness
- Shoulder pain and instability
- Tennis and golfer’s elbow
- Hamstring and hip strains
- Knee sprains and instability
- Patellofemoral syndrome and patellar tendonitis
- Ankle sprains
- Achilles tendonitis & plantar fasciitis
- Knee, hip, and other joint osteoarthritis
- Nerve entrapment syndromes, such as Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
- Sacroiliac (SI) joint dysfunction and pain
- Lumbar and cervical facet dysfunction and pain
